


The missing piece

by MelindaCoulson4



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: 5x08, Dad Coulson, F/M, Family Feels, Future Fic, Mom May, Momma May
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-25
Updated: 2018-01-25
Packaged: 2019-03-09 12:15:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13481283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelindaCoulson4/pseuds/MelindaCoulson4
Summary: The future is bleak. The team scattered. Melinda May spends her time taking care of a daughter she never knew she wanted. But she doesn't do it by herself.  Expansion on scenes from 5x08





	The missing piece

**Author's Note:**

> Well, I'm being optimistic about this one. Pretty sure Phil was not alive, but I needed to write this anyway. Enjoy!
> 
> Phil's pov

 

He shuts the door quietly behind him knowing that it's late. In fact, it's much later than it usually is when he gets back. It couldn't be helped. Their commander had forced them to stay over two extra hours for clean-up. His squad had spent the day taking out as many roaches as they could. But apparently, it was completely unacceptable to leave the roaches scattered about on Level 4. “ _Not so close to Kasius,”_ the commander had said. So they'd had to drag the dead carcasses to the elevator and down to Level 0 for incineration.   
  
_Population control:_ that was his job now. When the time came for job assignments here on the lighthouse they had to blend in. It was a more life-threatening position, but it brought home more credits. He'd joined the squad of twenty other men who'd been picked to eliminate the roaches each day. It seemed like no matter how many they took out the numbers always replenished itself tenfold. They could never make a significant chunk.   
  
Either way he'd come home each day mostly exhausted, limbs aching, body bruised. But he'd be rewarded immediately by the sight of Robin and Melinda together. The three of them would share dinner together and talk. Those moments made it all worth it. The peace of being together gave him the strength to get through the days.   
  
The dim light of the bedside lamp in Robin's room illuminates the hall. That either meant that she was awake, plagued by her visions which drove her to sketch the scenes out or she'd turned the light on to keep the monsters away. The roaches were the monsters here. A few times a month she'd have nightmares about the roaches invading their level. When the nightmare got to be too much she would crawl into bed and sandwich herself between he and Melinda. When the nightmare was bearable she would turn on the bedside light. He'd told her that the roaches were afraid of light so there's no way they'd come into her room. It was enough to placate her. After all he'd know- he dealt with the roaches every day.   
  
Other times, the visions would be responsible for her insomnia. Those were the rough nights. Sometimes he'd walk into Robin's room and pictures upon pictures would be scattered around the floor and piling up on the bed. All meaningless scribbles unless she could remember the fine details, but usually she couldn't.   
  
But he and Melinda weren't one's to push her. So they'd all pick up the piles of drawings and shove them into the box in the corner of her room. A tiny part of him couldn't throw the creations away for fear that one day they'd need to refer back to them. In case they'd be significant in some way in the future. There was always that chance.    
  
Melinda was especially against feeding into the visions unless they were sure that the visions directly impacted their future. It took a toll on Melinda when Robin was having a bad day. She tried so hard to provide a normal upbringing for Robin, but some days it was too difficult. He always knew when it had been a tough day for both of them by the strained glaze of Melinda's eyes and the rigidity of her movements.   
  
He enters Robin's room, fully expecting to see her scribbling away as if the weight of the world rested on her shoulders. The scene before him catches him off-guard and completely melts his heart. Melinda is there with Robin connected to her side each fast asleep and breathing deeply. Robin's head rests on Melinda's shoulder. Melinda has both arms wound around Robin protectively. They're completely wrapped up in each other. The white knit blanket that he'd traded an old book for cocoons Robin's small form. It barely covers Melinda, which tells him that she hadn't meant to fall asleep here.   
  
He smiles, genuinely awed that this is his family: two beautiful people that he loves furiously. He moves towards them, taking gentle steps across the floor, overwhelmed by the need to just look at them like this. It's not often they seem so unburdened. But both of their faces now are relaxed, all of life's worries have melted away in this moment. He wants to memorize their expressions. It's moments like these that cause him to wonder what he's done to deserve them.  
  
He's still getting used to seeing Melinda this way even though it's been close to two years since they've been in space. This Melinda, that isn't covered in bruises, blood, or dirt. Where she isn't being taken and replaced by an LMD. Where she isn't engaging in hand-to-hand combat everyday of her life. Where she is allowed to be _just Melinda_ and that is enough. This softer woman who still exhibits an innumerable amount of strength each day.   
  
Raising Robin, loving her, has given Melinda a glow. She's lighter somehow- finally able to show off her natural kindness and warmth. It was no secret between them that she always desired to be a mother. After the events in Bahrain, she'd given up that dream, but he knew she always had it in her. It was obvious, the way she dealt with Daisy. He's lucky to witness it now. It highlights how beautiful she is in every way. It's all he could ever ask for.   
  
"Hi," she whispers, voice layered thick with sleep.   
  
Her voice catches him off-guard. Momentary panic courses through his veins, remembering all of the years where he didn't allow himself to be seen admiring her. His mind had become conditioned to it; it was one of the harder habits regarding their relationship to break.  But now he could just look at her whenever he chose, appreciating her for who she is.  
  
"Hey," he responds, keeping his voice low.  
  
He should've expected her to wake up; she'd always been able to wake at the sound of a pin dropping. Thanks to the instincts of being a highly skilled shield agent that she would never lose.   
  
"Anything?" She questions, hopeful.   
  
They did this question and answer dance every day. Any significant movements today? Had he heard anything? Any news from the surface? From their missing people? Both had been unable to give up hope that maybe somehow they’d survived.   
  
"No," he says, regretfully. Their need for information was strong but they never had much luck in that department since being forced to inhabit this space station. They were both used to being on top, in control. Formerly the director and his right hand. To not be in the loop, questioning everything, to be blindsided and shut out was not something they were accustomed to. It was one of the harder aspects of life here. They were still getting used to it after all this time.   
  
The familiar flash of hurt clouds her eyes. His calloused hand reaches out to cover her own, silently comforting her.   
  
Each time he reports no news, he knows that the hope dies a little bit more inside of her. There would always be the open wound: _what happened to their people_. Their imaginations were probably worse than the reality. That didn't stop the nightmares and the constant intrusive thoughts. The guilt weighed heavily upon them.   
  
The loss that they had suffered was irreparable. After working with the team all of those years, they'd grown to care about each other like family. Then it was split apart. They'd lost Daisy and Mack somewhere on the surface that day the Earth cracked apart. Nothing was the same after that. Even though Fitz, Simmons, and Yo-Yo had made the journey with them everything had changed. Yo-Yo silently envied that everyone had their partner to turn to yet she lost hers. Fitz and Simmons felt the pressure of building the time machine. They all disagreed about how to move forward. Yo-Yo wanted to attack the Kree. Fitz and Simmons argued that the time machine wouldn't work. They couldn't go back to change what had happened. It was already done, so there was no point. He and Melinda wanted to play the long game. Keep living under Kree rule until Robin gave them something significant.   
  
They'd all become a pitiful shadow of the team that they'd used to be.   
  
Melinda and Robin were the only things that he had left in this world.   
  
"Dad?"  
  
He turns his attention down to the small figure wrapped in blankets, blinking up at him.   
  
"Hi honey," he replies. He can't help but smile while looking at her. Her sweet innocence helped him forget for just a little while. She gave him another reason to go on. When he was doubting it all he thought of her. Her future. And he remembered why it was so important to keep moving forward every day.   
  
"I missed you," she says, wide brown eyes staring up at him.  
  
"I missed you too. I thought about snuggling here with you two all day." Truly he did. Always favoring the quiet with them rather than killing overgrown mutant bugs. But, he had a job to do. Even if he wasn't an agent officially, he had still sworn to serve and protect all people. The innocent. He'd never give up that duty. That fight. Now it was a fight for the survival and freedom of the human race.  
  
"Did you get all of the monsters out?" She questions, suddenly very serious. Unfortunately her fear is not a case of childhood imagination gone awry. The roaches are real and the base is crawling with them.  
  
The lie forms quickly in his mind. It's the type of lie all parents tell their kids. That the monster has been vanquished in order to protect them. All to keep the burdens of adulthood from the kids. "Of course I did. I wouldn't be able to sleep if I didn't. You know how scared I get," he gulps comically.  
  
"Yea. It's okay....mom will protect you," Robin says, completely genuinely.   
  
" _Oh_ she wounds me." He grabs his heart over his jacket dramatically. He can't hide the smirk from his face. It's true. Melinda would protect him if the roaches or anything else got in here. She was still much more capable in combat than him. Even though she's repeatedly assured him that he's actually improved with their weekly practices.   
  
Robin's pure childish giggles fill the room. She's laughing so hard that her head is thrown back into Melinda's shoulder.   
  
He peaks at Melinda and catches as she rolls her eyes at his antics, lips curving into a smile.   
  
The laughter quiets down as he catches Robin's eyes grow heavy once again. He reminds himself that she needs to sleep no matter how much he wants to stay here talking to her all night.   
  
"Go back to sleep. Maybe in the morning we can go gazing before I go to work. Sound good?"  
  
"Yea!" she nods excitedly.   
  
His heart still warms at the idea that she wants to spend time with him. Going gazing was their thing. They looked at the stars together. Their spot was on Level 2, the room where Fitz and Simmons worked on their plans for the time machine up until a year ago. Now the schematics and extensive notes that they'd taken lay strewn about the room haphazardly. No more than abandoned plans.   
  
The Kree paid the room no mind, believing it was just another storage area destroyed by the roaches. The far wall of the room had a retractable metal flap that would slowly slide open revealing a window that allowed them a glimpse of the stars- the deep blackness that seemed to go on forever. Somehow, it also held the promise of something greater. Of distant galaxies and the heroes that traveled around.  
  
Of course they'd learned that it was filled with assassins and marauders, but he still latched onto the hope that good could come from it too. He thought of it as a reflection of earth. Sure there were bad people but there were also a lot of good too. He just hoped that they could hold out long enough for that good to appear.  


When Robin sat beside him at the window, he told her elaborate stories about mighty galaxy heroes that traveled through spaces fighting off evil. She probably didn't believe him, but she listened intently anyway with eyes wide while asking questions. He would always marvel at how wise beyond her years she was. But who wouldn't be with the things she's seen and lived through. He and Melinda have done everything in their power to preserve her childhood. To ease her worries and let her have fun. It was a difficult task. This was no place for a child to roam free or to play with others. The Kree did not see the value in allowing free time. They were fierce and strict even with the children. That's why Melinda mostly stayed in their quarters to keep Robin safe and entertained.   
  
"Alright. Mom and I are going to sleep too. Come get us if you need anything," he reminds her.   
  
"Okay. I love you," she murmurs, eyes already flittering closed.  
  
Melinda tilts her head down and drops a kiss on the top of Robin's head. She slides herself out of the bed and stands next to him.  
  
"I love you too," he says, heart full of warmth. He lifts the white blanket up to Robin's shoulders, making sure she's fully covered. Then, he tucks each side of the blanket under her body so she stays completely wrapped up. The last thing he does is bend over and kiss her cheek just like every night.   
  
He starts walking out of the room, then turns back for one more peak at her. Her chest moves slowly up and down as she rests. She's peaceful like this, unburdened by anything. He commits the image to memory, telling himself that she's okay and if she needs them she'll come into their room tonight.   
  
He follows Melinda into the hallway. She slips into concerned parent mode once they're out of Robin's earshot, spinning around to face him before getting to their room. Her suit of armor fades away as the seconds tick by.  
  
"She couldn't fall asleep without me there. It's getting worse. She's having the nightmares at least four times a week now," she reports, the worry unmistakable in her tone.  
  
"Did she learn anything?" If she was having nightmares maybe she'd learned more about their situation. Something about their impending doom. Any piece of information that would help them.   
  
"No....it wasn't anything relevant. She was seeing.....death. Mine this time," she tells him arms folding in front of her stomach protectively.  
  
They didn't like dwelling on their deaths. They'd made the shared decision quickly that they wouldn't want to know about either of their deaths if Robin saw them. It was too much. Just last month he'd come home to Robin crying in her room after seeing his death. He sat with her for a while, holding her close to his chest reassuring her that he was okay. Melinda had dried tear tacks on her cheeks when he crawled into bed that night.   
  
"Anything significant on your end?" She asks changing the subject, back to agent mode.  
  
"It's bad out there. Kasius....he's taking more people," he reports.  
  
Anyone who Kasius deemed as a threat would be sent to the surface, which was guaranteed imminent death. Earth had become uninhabitable after breaking apart. Rumors had floated around about what it was like. Zero oxygen. Your lungs would instantly burst. The land infested with roaches. Deadly storms raged on. Anyone who gave the Kree a misguided look or said something that they deemed suspicious was doomed. That's why he stuck with keeping his head down, making miniscule moves only when he was sure it was completely safe. Which meant information came slow and progress was barely more than standstill.  
  
"I got a couple more snippets today," he tells her, pulling the proof out of his back pocket.  
  
Someone had slipped him a two page document detailing where the Kree received supplies from. The aim was to know ahead of time what the Kree were planning on doing by getting their hands on shipment manifestos. There were only a few people that he could trust out there. People would turn on one another for an extra meal or a couple of extra tokens. It was every man for himself. The hope that people held out for had died out after the first year passed.   
  
The lack of progress left them both feeling frustrated and useless. Shield had ingrained in them that missions were to be completed swiftly. The bad guys were to be arrested or taken down permanently. Hand-to-hand combat was a must. All of these things were completely impractical to them now. They were in the long fight this time. Recon was key. Forming relationships with other people who were strangers but they had no choice but to rely on. The Kree had them outnumbered, outgunned. Resources were at the bare minimum. It had already been two years and they had little to show for it. The continuation of the human race was at stake and the pressure weighed heavily upon their shoulders.   
  
"You're bleeding," Melinda suddenly says. She reaches up, fingertips lightly touching the side of his neck right under his left ear. He sees her squinting against the dim light out of the corner of his eye.   
  
Her fingers fall away from his neck as she grabs his hand without another word and leads him down the hall to their bathroom. She sits him on the metal toilet seat, her knees brushing his own as she moves. It's cramped with two people in here, but it brings them closer together so he doesn't mind.   
  
He watches her as she gathers supplies from the medicine cabinet hidden behind the mirror that hangs over the sink. They didn't have much stored up. They'd conserved and traded various items to get the collection that they have now. It's more than most people have.   
  
She picks up a piece of gauze and places a couple of drops of the liquid antiseptic onto it. It would be enough to clean the cut. It was so small that he hadn't even realized it was there until she pointed it out. Still, they could never be too careful. Her fingers lightly grasp his jaw and move his face to the side so she can get a clear view of the cut. The antiseptic stings as the gauze makes contact with his broken skin. He can't help the hiss that escapes his lips in response.   
  
She tapes the gauze to his skin to eliminate the chance of infection. He feels the warmth from her fingertips as she presses the sticky material against his neck. Her touch lingers over the patch and he senses her words before they even leave her mouth.   
  
"You have to be more careful," she sighs. It's meant as a warning but he detects the fear behind her words.   
  
"I'm trying," he tells her honestly. He knew the consequences of getting sick or hurt up here with supplies severely limited. They'd seen it first-hand. It happened to a married couple who they'd met and considered friends. Both were former police officers, so they'd all bonded over the idea of a quiet rebellion. It was a case of wrong place, wrong time. Donna had been assigned garbage duty. Tom had joined him on the roach cleanup crew.  
  
One day, Donna and a group of her co-workers had gotten into the elevators and went down to Level 2. A roach had greeted the group of them once the doors opened. She'd been slashed across the chest, but lucky to escape. A week later, she was dead. They hadn't had the proper supplies to heal her. After that, Tom had never been the same. A haunted look had permanently clouded his eyes. Phil saw himself in that man if anything ever happened to Melinda or Robin. Someone with nothing left to lose. A couple days after Donna's death Tom had gone up to the Kree level with a baseball bat- the level that was inhabited by the rulers. They never heard from him again.   
  
"Try harder, Phil. Please...I.....can't. I can't do this without you," she says, voice breaking with raw honesty. They'd stopped pretending and putting on brave faces for each other long ago. Their life together had gotten much easier from then on. Once they both accepted this new flow of their relationship.  
  
He knows that she'd be able to keep on going if something would happen to him. He knows her strength. The fight that burns inside of her. But he doesn't dare say it aloud. He swallows the words before they can leave his mouth, not wanting to get into that fight again. The one that they always had about recklessness and unnecessary risks on both of their parts. The one that stemmed from not wanting to lose each other over careless mistakes.  
  
He stands and cups her cheek, wanting her to know that he understands her worries. He waits for her dark eyes to meet his before speaking. He could always learn everything he needed to know by looking into those eyes.   
  
"I'll be more careful," he says seriously. It's a promise that he has every intention of keeping. To see Melinda and Robin through this mess. He can see that she needs the reassurance. He knows when to push her and today is not one of those days.   
  
The hand on her cheek travels through her dark strands and moves to holds the back of her head. He pulls her against his body with the other hand, needing to feel her warmth. Instant relief floods his senses as he's finally able to hold her after such a long day apart.   
  
Her arms wrap around his middle, holding him equally as close.    
  
His palm runs over the knots on her back, applying a light pressure, aiming to relieve the built up tension in her shoulder muscles. He clutches her a little bit tighter tonight feeling the honesty, love, protection, and acceptance in radiating from her arms.   
  
They'd become so intertwined he didn't know where he ended and she began. They were two drained people, desperate for the fight for survival to be over, but never granted the luxury. So he held her just much longer tonight, knowing that their daily challenges were far from over.   
  
He'd fight until the bitter end, humanity's last breath if it meant she'd live. 

//end//

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading. Leave me a comment :)


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